Panthers gear up for Sunday's NHL Draft

If Avs take a forward, Panthers may take D Seth Jones with the No. 2 pick; Weiss talks on hold

Team Orr's Seth Jones gets ready to pass while in front of his goalie… (PAUL DARROW / REUTERS )

June 27, 2013|By Harvey Fialkov, Sun Sentinel

NEW YORK — Unlike Colorado Avalanche vice president of hockey operations Joe Sakic, Panthers General Manager Dale Tallon doesn't believe in giving away his hand before the card game even begins.

So, unless Sakic is the best bluffer since Doyle Brunson, the Avs will select Halifax Mooseheads (QMJHL) center Nathan MacKinnon with the first pick of Sunday's NHL Entry Draft.

That would leave the Panthers with better leftovers than yesterday's Chinese food when they use the second overall pick on Portland Winterhawks (WHL) defenseman Seth Jones, a 6-foot-4, two-way force.

Or there's always MacKinnon's linemate left wing Jonathan Drouin, the Canadian Hockey League Player of the Year.

Jones, the son of former NBA forward Popeye Jones, is the NHL Central Scouting Bureau's top-ranked North American prospect. However, MacKinnon's stock has risen dramatically with an MVP performance in the Memorial Cup as he and Drouin led the Mooseheads to the CHL title over the Winterhawks.

Although the talent pool becomes quite shallow after the big four (MacKinnon, Jones, Drouin and Finnish center Aleksander Barkov) is off the board, Tallon and assistant GM Mike Santos are confident the Panthers will land a stud at No. 2 and bolster the team's depth with their six other picks.

"We'll get a good player, but it's up to us to do the right thing to develop that player,'' Santos said Thursday while traveling to Manhattan. "We're good any way we go. We could put Jones on a defensive corps that has [Alex] Petrovic, Erik Gudbranson and Michael Matheson, who we took last year [28th].

"We've got a lot of young talented forwards, too. [Jonathan] Huberdeau is Rookie of the Year, and we've got three young center prospects ready to start their pro career. Nick Bjugstad, Drew Shore, look what he did as a rookie last year, and Vincent Trocheck led the OHL in scoring.

"I don't think we have a particular need, especially when we have Jacob Markstrom in goal, so it gives us more options.''

Gudbranson and Huberdeau were the third picks of the 2010 and '11 drafts, respectively.

Tallon, no stranger to draft-day trades, has said he will listen to all offers for the prized pick if it will help the 30th-place Panthers rebound from last season's nightmarish, injury-plagued season.

Santos said the cell phones have been buzzing and he expects them to continue right up to 3 p.m. Sunday when the Avs go on the clock at Prudential Center, home of the New Jersey Devils, and site of the one-day, seven-round draft.

"We're in prime position to get a great player, but if there's something that makes sense to make our team better, we'll look at that, too,'' Santos said. "We'll either add to our core of young players or find a player to fill a need while the young players develop, or maybe we can do both.''

No Weiss talks

Santos said that he is not actively negotiating with any of his own unrestricted free agents, including veteran Stephen Weiss, goalie Jose Theodore and defenseman Tyson Strachan.

He did say the Panthers would entertain trade offers for Weiss before free agency kicks in next Friday.

"He's still under contract with us. If somebody wants the opportunity to speak to him early we would entertain that option,'' Santos said. "I'm sure there's interest in him because there's not a great market out there for centers.''

Santos said that decisions on which of his own restricted free agents to tender offers will be finalized Saturday. The deadline is Tuesday.

Among the more prominent RFAs on the Panthers are forwards Shawn Matthias and Peter Mueller, as well as Markstrom.

Santos high on Horachek

Santos, also General Manager of the San Antonio Rampage, said the hiring of Peter Horachek to coach the Panthers' AHL affiliate was a no-brainer.

"When a Peter Horachek is available you find a way to get him in your organization,'' said Santos, who worked with Horachek when both were in the Predators organization.

"He's a real good developer of young players who commands respect and has a very good presence on the bench. He's a winner.''